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September 2017 news

St Helena Hospice’s charity bike ride is now just a few weeks away, will you join in or could you help marshal?

Beat the Street is turning our town into a giant, fun, free game for the community from 20 September 2017! Find out how to take part.

With the new academic year we have updated the University Cycle Map

Ten tips to avoid if you are thinking of commuting to work from Cyclescheme

If you are concerned about Bike Theft, check out localised advice from the Colchester Cycling Campaign.

Have you heard of the Dutch Reach? A simple but different approach to opening your car door which helps ensure you see approaching cyclists, motorcyclists and pedestrians and avoid 'dooring' them. Adopt the habit, spread the word and help save lives.

To finish on a lighter note, a glimpse of everyday cycling in Holland.

We have the opportunity to revamp the Cycle Colchester newsletter and website. As both exist to support the local community to cycle more, we would like your feedback to influence the shape the revamp takes. We would really appreciate it if you could take a few minutes to fill out our short questionnaire.

Local charity St Helena Hospice’s annual fundraising bike ride is now just a few weeks away, taking place on October 8th. Have you considered taking part in the ride? There are different length routes of 10, 25, 50 or 75 miles to suit all levels of ability. The rides will go through the picturesque Essex countryside, starting and finishing at Monks Farm in Dedham.

If you can’t join a ride, St Helena’s Hospice would still welcome volunteers to help marshal the routes, so if you can help please get in touch with them.

If you are keen to get involved please call Wendy or Lisa on Tel: 01206 931468.

Beat the street

Beat the Street is coming to Colchester and turning our Town into a giant, fun, free game for the community from 20 September 2017!

How far can you walk, cycle and run around your area, tapping beat boxes along the way? Can you be part of a winning team?

The game runs from 20 September to 8 November 2017

Collect and register your card as soon as you can (preferably within two weeks of the start date maximum). Cards and maps can be collected from various distribution centres and you will need to register online in preparation for the game launch.

There are dozens of beat boxes situated on lamp posts around Colchester and Tiptree and each time you tap between two beat boxes from 20 September, 10 points are gained! The more journeys you make, the more points you get!

There will also be “lucky taps” with an opportunity to win further prizes throughout the game!

You can play individualy or you can join a team, either your child’s school team or you can form your own team.

Join in this great opportunity to combine active travel with having fun!

University Cycle Map

We have updated the University Cycle Map to include the new Wivenhoe off road route, other new cycle infrastructure and routes from east Colchestser to Colchester Institute. See the updated map.

Thinking about cycling to work?

There are plenty of beginner’s errors to avoid when riding to work. Cyclescheme explain ten of the most common and how to avoid/overcome them.

Bike theft in Colchester has been in the local media recently, and knowing a few people that have recently had a bike stolen we thought it would be useful to provide some advice on how best to secure your bike and what to do if it is stolen from a local perspective.

Colchester Cycling Campaign have put a useful page together which includes:

One area of Dutch thinking that we can all introduce into our lives and help spread the message about is ‘the Dutch Reach’ If you have ever been knocked over by a motorist opening their car door whether as a cyclist or a pedestrian this will resonate with you.

Between 2011 and 2015, 3108 people were injured, eight fatally by car dooring. While 65% of these were cyclists, the rest were walkers, motorcyclists or passengers, so even among your non-cycling friends and family, it’s worth getting them to change their habits when opening their car doors by using the Dutch Reach.

The Dutch Reach is a way of opening a car door which ensures that the person has to look over their shoulder before they open the door and it’s very simple! Simply use your right hand to open the door rather then your left. This forces your body to turn to the left where you can see any approaching cyclists. To see it in practice check out this helpful video

Cycling UK have asked the Department for Transport to raise awareness about the dangers of car dooring and to consider promoting the Dutch Reach, but why wait for it to become official policy, we ask that you adopt this practice yourself and encourage others to do the same.

Every day cycling in Holland

On a lighter note, we leave you with a fantastic video showing the creative ways that the Dutch use their bikes in everyday life!